All creatures of our God and King
Hail to the Brightness of Zion's Glad morning
How Blest is he whose Trespass
Holy Spirit, Truth Divine
God, in the Gospel of his Son
Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah
Lord, dismiss us us with thy blessing
John 1:1-18
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. 8 He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.
9 The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 (John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’”) 16 For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, he has made him known.
Romans 8:12-17
12 So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. 13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.
Q.Why is he called God's only-begotten Son,
since we also are children of God?
A.Because Christ alone
is the eternal, natural Son of God. 1
We, however, are children of God by adoption,
through grace, for Christ's sake. 2
Loneliness is all around us. Even surrounded by people one can be lonely. Perhaps not all the time but on occasion.
Ephesians 2....tells us that naturally we are not the children of God but of wrath. Not deserving of any good from God.
Consider who Satan is... A murderer from the very beginning. One who is alienated from God.
So why does the bible call some people children of God???
Jesus is the only son of God. He is the only natural son of God. The one and only Son. He is the begotten Son of God.
People can misunderstand the word begotten.
- He is not a created thing
- He shares God's nature fully
- It does not happen over time
- God the Son has always been, just as God the Father is eternal and God the Spirit is eternal
So how can we be children of God?
- Because we are adopted
- Because we are chosen by God
- Because we believe in what Christ did for us
- Because of God's work in us
1John 5:1 what Jesus did opened the way for us
Jesus took upon his own self what we should have had delivered.